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DIRECTIVE No. 19/1999/ CT-TTg OF JULY 16, 1999 ON MEASURES TAKEN TO BOOST THE SALE OF PLANTED-FOREST WOOD

In recent years, the Government has issued many guidelines and policies to encourage people to invest in planting, protecting and developing forests. Up to now, many planted forests have reached the exploitable age but, for many reasons, planted-forest products remain unsaleable though, in some places they were sold in form of raw materials for processing industry at very low prices, thus disheartening the forest growers.

In order to raise the forest growers� income and continue encouraging people to invest their labor and money in making full use of waste land, bare hills and mountains, for afforestation and to participate in the five-million hectare afforestation program, the Prime Minister instructs the ministries, branches and the People�s Committees at all levels to well implement the following:

1. To encourage the use of planted-forest wood as raw materials for industries and to meet the people�s wood consumption demand;

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall coordinate with concerned ministries and branches in clearly determining the demand for wood as raw materials for various industries, for processing in service of people�s life from now to the year 2010 in order to direct the localities to draw up concrete plans for development of raw-material forest zones; to produce and supply materials, plant seeds; to support and guide the localities in intensive afforestation so as to ensure the adequate supply of raw-material wood and to meet the demand of the national economy.

2. To encourage the export of planted-forest wood:

For planted-forest (economic forests) which have reached the exploitable age (including planted forests in raw-material wood zones for industries), if domestic factories can not consume all products therefrom, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall coordinate with the Ministry of Trade in seeking the outlets, guiding and encouraging enterprises to buy planted forest wood for processing and export.

The Government allows enterprises to export wood products from planted forests (including log and processed timber).

3. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and concerned ministries as well as branches in studying and submitting to the Prime Minister for issuance in the third quarter of 1999 such mechanism of encouraging afforestation and the sale of planted-forest wood, as:

The policy on exemption and reduction of afforestation land use levy and land rental; the credit policy of lending capital to farmers for afforestation.

The policy on tax preferences for export wood products made of planted-forest wood, especially handicrafts and fine-art items, high-class furniture and goods are manufactured through high technological process and high techniques.

4. The planted-forest owners may take initiative in exploiting their own forests in accordance with the process and norms defined by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, ensuring the forest regeneration and restoration as well as the ecological environment equilibrum.

- For already exploited forests which can not be restored, the forest owners shall have to replant and restore forests on such exploited areas.

- To remove all procedural obstacles, permitting the exploitation, transport, sale and export of planted forest wood.

All cases of harassment, causing troubles and difficulties, thus damaging the interests of producers as well as consumers of products made of planted-forest wood, shall be strictly dealt with by law.

The Prime Minister requests the People�s Committees of all levels, the ministries and branches to well implement the tasks mentioned in this Directive.

For the Prime Minister

Deputy Prime Minister
NGUYEN CONG TAN